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汉 Han · 乐府 Yuefu ballad

公无渡河

Sir, Do Not Cross the River

无名氏

Anonymous

乐府yuefu 悲剧tragedy 警示warning 汉乐府Han yuefu

公无渡河，公竟渡河。
堕河而死，当奈公何！

Sir, do not cross the river! — yet Sir, you crossed it after all.
You fell in the river and died—what am I to do with you, Sir!

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Meaning

In sixteen characters the poem stages a complete tragedy: a desperate warning, a willful crossing, a drowning, and a heartbroken cry—the irreversibility of fate and the anguish of helpless grief.

公啊，不要渡河！公却终究渡了河。落水而死，叫我拿公怎么办啊！

Appreciation

Pure plain description and repeated structure carry the whole. The first line 'Sir, do not cross' and the second 'Sir, you crossed after all' differ by a single word, and the collision between pleading and stubbornness is born of that one difference. 'Fell in the river and died—what am I to do' closes on an unanswerable question, stating no grief yet brimming with it. Short lines and urgent tone are the utmost condensation of the Han yuefu ideal of 'moved by sorrow and joy, arising from affairs.'

【白话串讲】 “公无渡河，公竟渡河。堕河而死，当奈公何”——汉乐府里最短也最悲的诗：劝你别渡河，你偏要渡，掉进河里死了，我能怎么办？十六个字，一个悲伤的故事。传说这是朝鲜艄公的妻子，为丈夫唱的歌。【意象与手法】全诗纯用白描与重章：首句“公无渡河”与次句“公竟渡河”仅换一字，劝阻与任性对撞，张力即生于这一字之差。“堕河而死，当奈公何”以不可解的诘问收尾，不申说悲痛，悲痛自满纸。句短调促，是汉乐府“感于哀乐、缘事而发”的极致凝练。【情感与主旨】据崔豹《古今注》，此曲本名《箜篌引》，为朝鲜津卒霍里子高妻丽玉所作：子高晨渡，见一狂夫披发提壶乱流而渡，其妻追止不及，夫堕河死，妻乃援箜篌作歌。诗写的是不可逆的悲剧与追悔无及的哀恸，亦隐喻人在命途前明知不可为而为之的执念。【名句点睛】 “公竟渡河”——一个“竟”字写尽劝阻无效后的惊愕与宿命；“当奈公何”则把整首的力道收进一声哭不出的呼喊，悲到极处反成无言。

Background

'Gong Wu Du He' belongs to the Han yuefu 'Xianghe Ge Ci · Se Diao Qu,' also named 'Konghou Yin' (Song of the Harp). Cui Bao's 'Gu Jin Zhu' of the Jin records its origin: Huo Li Zigao, a ferryman at the Korean border, at dawn saw a white-haired madman with loose hair carrying a gourd wade the rapids; his wife ran calling 'Sir, do not cross' but could not stop him, and he fell and died; she took up the konghou harp and sang this song, then threw herself in the river too. Later people transmitted its tune as 'Konghou Yin.'

公无渡河属汉乐府相和歌辞瑟调曲，又名箜篌引，是现存汉乐府中篇幅最短而感人最深的名篇之一。晋人崔豹《古今注》详载其本事：朝鲜津卒霍里子高一日清晨撑船，见一白发狂夫披头散发、手提酒壶，不顾水势汹涌而强行乱流涉渡，其妻在后随呼公无渡河而追阻不及，狂夫终于堕河而死；其妻悲痛欲绝，乃取箜篌弹之，作公无渡河之歌，声甚凄怆，曲终亦投河自尽。子高归家告其妻丽玉，丽玉伤之，援箜篌而写其声，闻者莫不堕泪，遂传其曲为箜篌引。此诗即那位丧夫之妇临水悲歌的十六字绝唱。其产生的年代与地域，学界或以为出自汉代乐府采诗之途、或以为本为古朝鲜津畔的民间悲歌经中土乐府采录而流传，然无论其源出何处，它以极简的形式承载了一出完整的人间悲剧，缘事而发、感于哀乐，正是汉乐府精神的极致体现，故历来被视为汉乐府短章中以少总多、以拙笔写至情的典范。

Art

In sixteen characters it completes a miniature tragedy, relying entirely on the reversal between 'do not' and 'after all' and the closing question 'what am I to do.' The first two lines repeat the same structure, changing but one word, so that the urgency of the plea and the resolve to cross collide violently; the last two turn from narration to crying to heaven, the rhythm tightening then cutting short, achieving the folk-song mastery of saying much with little.

此诗以十六字构成一出微型悲剧，全篇的艺术张力集中于无与竟二字的反跌，以及当奈公何的诘问收束。前两句公无渡河、公竟渡河同构重出，句式全同而仅易一字：无是劝阻之切，是妻子撕心裂肺的呼喊；竟是渡河之决，是狂夫不顾一切的执意。一劝一行、一止一往，两句之间形成剧烈的对撞，短短八字便浓缩了阻拦无效、事与愿违的全部惊愕与无奈。后两句由叙事陡转呼天：堕河而死是结局，戛然而至、不容缓冲；当奈公何是恸绝之问，不申说悲痛而悲痛自满纸。全诗结构上呈现出劝阻、执拗、殒命、哀恸四个环节的急遽推进，节奏先促后绝、由紧张而崩裂，如一声未及完成的痛哭。它不加任何修饰、不设任何铺垫，纯以最朴拙的重复与诘问，把一人一世的倾覆写尽，得民歌以少胜多、以拙为工之妙，是浅语皆深的极致。其所以能动千古读者者，正在于把最繁复的人世悲欢压进最简的十六字之中，使人读之如临其境、如闻其呼，于无声处听惊雷，于极简处见至哀；全篇无一字闲笔，亦无一字可移易，删一字则情节不完，易一字则张力尽失，足证其字字皆从肺腑中来，非可以寻常篇幅论短长者。

Allusions

'Gong' (Sir): a respectful term for a man, here the madman. 'Cross the river': fording the rapids. 'Jing' (after all): ultimately, unexpectedly, carrying the shock of things contrary to wish. 'Nai... he' (what to do with...): a fixed construction meaning 'what can be done about...'; 'dang nai gong he' is 'what am I to do with you, Sir'—the torn cry of a widow.

此诗语言纯出口语，不用一处典故，然其字词句式皆有可细究者，且它本身后来成为后世反复拟写的母题。就字词言：公为对成年男子的尊称，此处指那位披发提壶、乱流而渡的狂夫；渡河即乱流涉水而过，河指其所临之大川；无为禁止之辞，相当于毋、莫，公无渡河即公啊不要渡河，是劝阻；竟训终究、竟然，含事与愿违、出乎意料之惊，公竟渡河即公竟然还是渡了河。当奈公何一句，奈何是古汉语固定句式，意为对某人某事怎么办、把某人怎么样，中间嵌入公字而成奈公何，即教我拿你怎么办啊，是丧夫之后呼天抢地、无可如何的椎心之问。就母题言：此曲自汉以下屡经拟作，李白有公无渡河一篇铺衍其意，以黄河西来决昆仑、咆哮万里触龙门写河之险恶，以有长鲸白齿若雪山写渡者之危，末仍归于公无渡河、公竟渡河的悲叹，足见此十六字短章感人之深、影响之远，遂成乐府中一个历久不衰的悲剧原型。

Commentary

Shen Deqian's 'Gu Shi Yuan' says Han yuefu is 'plain yet not vulgar, shallow yet able to be deep'; these four lines of 'Gong Wu Du He' capture exactly that spirit. Later Li Bai expanded its meaning in his 'Gong Wu Du He,' showing how deeply this short piece moves.

历代论汉乐府者，无不推此篇为短章之绝唱。清人沈德潜《古诗源》总评汉乐府谓其质而不俚、浅而能深、近而能远，公无渡河四句正可当此十二字而无愧：语极质朴而不流于粗俗，意极浅显而深不可测，事极切近而余味悠远。后世评家多惊叹其以十六字成一悲剧的惊人容量——劝阻、执意、溺亡、哀恸，起承转合俱全，而通篇不着一个悲字、愁字，悲愁却弥漫纸上，此正民歌以拙笔写至情、以无言写至痛的极致。李白拟作公无渡河，铺陈其事至数十句，极写黄河之险、渡者之愚、旁观者之痛，然论者每谓其纵横排奡终不及原作十六字之凝重直击人心，反证短章以少总多、戛然而止的力量之大。近人论中国叙事诗、悲剧诗之源，亦常举此篇为最早以极简形式完成完整悲剧结构的范例，谓其一字之差生出无穷张力、一问之绝含尽万端哀痛，堪称汉语诗歌以形式的极简承载情感的极重的典型。

Prosody

Form Mixed-line yuefu (short piece)杂言乐府短章

Rhyme The characters 'river,' 'river,' and 'what' (he) rhyme together (Old Chinese ge group), one rhyme throughout—short and urgent, matching the abruptly turning tragedy.河、河、何三字协韵，同属上古歌部，一韵到底，韵脚短促迫切

Tone pattern It does not follow later regulated prosody, but is driven by the breath of speech; the four lines move from cry to narration to question, the rhythm urgent then cut off, fierce in voice.不依后世律度平仄，纯以语气驱遣字数，四句由呼告而叙事而诘问，节奏先促后绝

Reading note Han yuefu were mostly gathered from the folk and had no strict form; this piece carries the heaviest feeling in the simplest shape—a representative of 'shallow words all deep.'此篇为汉乐府杂言短章，声律上全不依后世近体的平仄格律，而纯以情感语气驱遣字数与节奏，是民歌本色的极致。全诗四句十六字，句式以四言为主，两两成组：前两句公无渡河、公竟渡河同构重出，后两句堕河而死、当奈公何一叙一问。韵脚上，河、河、何三字同属上古音的歌部，反复押韵、一韵到底，且河与何声音相近、字形相关，反复回旋于唇齿之间，造成一种迫促紧张、几乎喘不过气的音响效果，与悲剧急转直下的语气高度契合。节奏上，前两句因句式的完全重复而形成一种急切的推进感，如追呼之声一迭高过一迭；至堕河而死则节奏骤然收紧、如当头一击；当奈公何一句则戛然收煞，余音激烈而不平。全篇声情先促而后绝、由紧张而崩裂，虽无严整的格律，却以最朴素的重复与最自然的语气获得了极强的音乐性与冲击力，正是汉乐府本无严整律度、以极简之形载极重之情、浅语皆深的代表，也是研究早期民歌声律与情感关系的重要样本。

Line by line

公无渡河，公竟渡河。

Sir, do not cross the river! — yet Sir, you crossed it after all.

公啊，不要渡河！公却终究渡了河。

Sir, do not cross the river; but, sir, you crossed it after all.

此二句同构重出、仅易一字，是全诗张力之所系。公无渡河是呼告、是劝阻，一个无字里凝着妻子撕心裂肺、追呼不及的惊惧；公竟渡河是叙事、是结局，一个竟字里满是事与愿违、劝阻落空的惊愕与绝望。无与竟一字之差，却把劝止之切与执意之决猛烈对撞在一起：一边是拼命的拦阻，一边是不管不顾的强渡，两句八字便演出了阻拦、执拗两个环节的全部冲突。句式的完全重复更强化了这种对撞——同样的公字开头、同样的渡河结尾，唯中间一字翻转，遂令悲剧在近乎机械的重复中骤然逼出，开门见山而力透纸背，是民歌以复沓生张力的绝妙手笔。

The two lines differ by one word. Sir, do not cross the river—the wife's frantic warning; but, sir, you crossed it after all. The single changed word (not after all) turns the warning into the report. The repetition of the same address makes the collision: plea and fact in eight words. To have said she warned him and he went anyway would be a story; the don't-cross and the after-all-cross are the story.

堕河而死，当奈公何！

You fell in the river and died—what am I to do with you, Sir!

落水而死，叫我拿公怎么办啊！

You fell in the river and died; what can I do with you now!

此二句由叙事陡转呼天，是全诗悲痛的顶点与收束。堕河而死四字直书结局，不加一字铺垫、不容片刻缓冲，戛然而至，正如溺亡之突然与不可挽回；当奈公何则以一声恸绝之问收煞全篇，奈何本是无可如何之辞，嵌一公字而成奈公何，遂化为丧夫之妇对着滔滔河水呼天抢地、走投无路的椎心之问。此句妙在不言悲而悲已极：它不描摹眼泪、不铺陈哀号，只以一个无从回答的诘问收尾，把满腔的悲痛全压进这一声哭不出来的呼喊里。悲到极处反成无言，问到绝处更无以答，是汉乐府以拙笔写至情、以诘问代号啕的最高表现。

The ending. You fell in the river and died; what can I do with you now! The report of death without embellishment, then the question to a man who cannot answer. The what-can-I-do is the widow's cry to the flood. To have said she wept over his drowned body would be pathos; the fallen death and the unanswered question are the pathos.

Study

Word focus

竟 The character 'jing' (after all) writes the shock and sense of fate when the warning fails—the turning point that holds the whole poem's force. 竟字见于公竟渡河一句，是全诗转折的力点，也是无与竟对撞中最见分量的一字。竟训终究、竟然，含着强烈的出乎意料、事与愿违之意。上句公无渡河是妻子拼死的劝阻，下句公竟渡河则以一个竟字写出劝阻彻底落空后的惊愕：任你千呼万唤、追阻不及，他竟然还是渡了河。这个竟字里，既有对狂夫执迷不悟的惊骇，又有一种冥冥中不可抗拒的宿命感——仿佛人明知不可为而偏要为之，明知前有死亡而偏要投身其中。以一字写尽劝阻无效之后的错愕与无力，并为下句的堕河而死埋下必然之势，可谓着一竟字而全诗的悲剧感陡然生成，是短章炼字以少总多的典型。

奈公何 'Nai gong he' (what am I to do with you, Sir) closes on a cry to heaven; stating no grief yet grief is at its peak—a model of the Han yuefu writing deepest feeling with clumsiest pen. 奈公何三字见于结句当奈公何，是全诗以呼天诘问收束的关键。奈何本是古汉语的固定句式，意为把某事某人怎么办、对之如何是好，中间嵌入公字而成奈公何，即教我拿你怎么办啊。此三字看似平淡，实则字字血泪：狂夫已堕河而死，一切劝阻、追赶、悲呼皆归无用，生者面对这不可挽回的结局，除了一声无可奈何的诘问，再无别话可说。它不写号啕、不状痛哭，只以一个根本无法回答的问句收尾，把丧夫之妇那种走投无路、肝肠寸断而又无处发泄的悲痛全部收摄其中。问而不答、悲而无言，正是此三字撼人心魄之处——它让全诗的力道收进一声哭不出来的呼喊里，悲到极处反成静默，是汉乐府浅语载深情的绝佳范例。